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Chinampas: What they are, how they work, and why they matter today more than ever.

One of today's most innovative forms of sustainable farming is old. Like, really, really old. Aztec Empire old: chinampas.

With all the focus we put on technology, it's easy to believe that sustainability is a new-age idea. Scientists are frantically trying to develop something to save the world from our recent mistakes — the pollution of the Industrial Revolution, spills from any number of oil companies, and the human-made climate change that scientists only began to notice in the late 1900s.

In reality, one of the most innovative farming solutions has been here all along. Sustainable farming isn't a 20th century invention. It's something the Aztecs started doing centuries ago called chinampas.

The Aztecs used stunning floating gardens — otherwise known as chinampas — to grow their crops without harming the environment.

[rebelmouse-image 19533243 dam="1" original_size="800x562" caption="Photo by Karl Weule/Wikimedia Commons." expand=1]Photo by Karl Weule/Wikimedia Commons.

Chinampas were created by piling mud and decaying plants into small stationary islands on top of which the farmers would sow maize, beans, chilies, squash, tomatoes, and greens. Farmers would also grow the colorful flowers used in a variety of their ceremonies. To stabilize the islands, sturdy reeds were bound together and used to both border each chinampa and to help anchor it to the ground.

The dredging of the mud cleared the way for canals and naturally reinvigorated the nutrients in the soil that fed their crops. The resulting system of canals and gardens created a habitat for fish and birds, which helped maintain the health of the ecosystem and also provided additional sources of food.

The chinampas didn't harm the environment — they enhanced it.

[rebelmouse-image 19533245 dam="1" original_size="2048x1367" caption=""Floating Gardens" drawing by Internet Archive Book Images/Flickr." expand=1]"Floating Gardens" drawing by Internet Archive Book Images/Flickr.

This wasn't just a feat of incredible gardening — chinapas took a lot of complicated work to create.

Chinampas are sustainable, but they aren't self-maintained. Farmers had to construct a series of systems and processes to keep their people and the land healthy. Drainage systems were added to avoid flooding during the rainy season.

To fertilize the gardens, they developed a waste system to collect human excrement from the cities and spread it over their crops. The result was more than just flourishing crops: The chinampas actually helped prevent waste from entering and poisoning the water supply.

The fact that Aztecs found a way to turn unworkable swampland into a flourishing garden is an accomplishment in itself. Even more impressive is the amount of organized manpower, planning, and utilization of their resources required to make their idea a reality.

[rebelmouse-image 19533246 dam="1" original_size="800x533" caption="A chinampa in Mexico City. Photo by Emmanuel Eslava/Wikimedia Commons." expand=1]A chinampa in Mexico City. Photo by Emmanuel Eslava/Wikimedia Commons.

So don't call it a comeback. Chinampas have been here for years.

They're still in place around Mexico City, where they're both a tourist attraction and a working farm maintained by the locals. Other cities and countries have picked up on the chinampa idea, too — you can find them on the Baltimore waterfront and even cleaning up New York's polluted Gowanus Canal.

Some ecological companies have even taken elements of the Aztecs' methods and used it to create new technology that resembles the ancient version of the floating gardens. The sustainability benefits still appeal to modern gardeners — especially since chinampas can grow plants, clean and conserve water, and don't require large swaths of land.

[rebelmouse-image 19533247 dam="1" original_size="1024x675" caption="A modern iteration of the Aztecs' original chinampa method. Photo by EZGrow Garden." expand=1]A modern iteration of the Aztecs' original chinampa method. Photo by EZGrow Garden.

The success of chinampas is a testament to the fact that sometimes the most innovative solutions don't involve looking to the future, but to the past.

The incredible efficiency of this indigenous gardening method serves as a reminder that sustainability doesn't have to be expensive or rely on the most advanced technology available to us today.

Sometimes, the best thing to do is to look backward — toward the people who figured out how to do it right the first time.

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Emmy-winning director's obituary for his wife of 25 years has become a viral love story

"For those who never knew her, I'm sorry for your loss."

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Bob Weide's obituary for his wife Linda is a beautiful tribute to a beautiful love story.

Everyone appreciates a story of true love that stands the test of time, even when it ends in loss. Emmy-winning screenwriter, director and producer Robert Weide has captured people's hearts with a love story for the ages—one that just happens to be his own.

Weide is best known for directing and producing the first five seasons of "Curb Your Enthusiasm," but he is currently in the spotlight for a more personal reason. His beloved wife, Linda, passed away in December 2022, and the obituary he wrote for her has gone viral for its pure love and charm.

Weide published the obituary in the Los Angeles Times, but also shared it on Twitter after other people started sharing it.

From the first line, we start to get a picture of the woman Weide was married to for 25 years.

"Linda Weide, my remarkable wife, believed everybody's age was nobody's business. Let's just say she was ageless and timeless. She had a kind of elegance from another era," he wrote.

Weide shared that she had been diagnosed with a rare, fatal neurological disease called Progressive Supranuclear Palsy in 2018. She died at home on Christmas Day, peacefully, in Weide's arms.

"If you must die, try to do it in the arms of someone who loves you," he wrote. "It helps."

He described how they met on September 30, 1994. "I walked into Café Aroma in Studio City, and there she was," he wrote. "She had it all—beauty, style, grace, intelligence, wit, a great laugh, a blinding smile and (can I say this in 2023?) legs that demanded to be shown off, and were."

He said he wrote in his journal that night, "I think I may be in big trouble." Thus began their 28-year-long relationship that included a 25-year marriage.

"She was remarkably low maintenance," he continued. "We both appreciated the occasional meal in a fine restaurant and traveling abroad, but some years I'd ask what she wanted for her birthday and she would answer, 'a grilled cheese sandwich.' Typical. She was generous to a fault, always putting others' needs before her own."

Weide shared that his wife had a particular "soft spot" for animals in need. "Our own animals were all rescues, and friends would tell her, 'If I can come back in another life, I want to be one of your animals.'" he wrote.

Linda was an actress and Weide shared some of her most memorable roles, but it's clear her role as the leading lady in his life meant the most to him.

"What a team we made," Weide wrote. "She was Gracie to my George. After we purchased side-by-side cemetery plots years ago, I asked her what she wanted her marker to say. She answered, 'I'm with Stupid.' (That request will not be honored.) Oh dear—what am I ever supposed to do without her?"

It can't be easy to wrap up a tribute to the love of your life after they pass, but Weide did it beautifully.

"They say, 'Nothing lasts forever,' but they didn't know about my love for her," he wrote. "28 years wasn't nearly long enough. Still, I may just be the luckiest SOB who ever lived. Rest well, Bunnie. I hope we'll be together again."

And finally, the perfect last line:

"For those who never knew her, I'm sorry for your loss."

Weide has been "surprised and a bit overwhelmed" by how people have responded to the obituary, but he's thrilled that so many people are getting a glimpse of

"I love that total strangers are confessing to tears and saying they can tell what a beautiful person Linda was. The fact that so many are getting a small taste of what I blessed with for 28 years is so moving," he wrote on Twitter. "Many of the comments have made me cry, some make me laugh...Others make me shout, 'Yes, yes!'"

"Anyway, my deepest appreciation to everyone who's taken the time to read or ❤️ or comment on the tribute," he continued. "You have made this new widower feel a little less lonely. And I know Linda sends her love, too.”

Thank you, Bob Weide, for sharing your love story with the world. It seems you were right—we all would have loved Linda.

Read Weide's obituary in full here. And if this story compels you to do something to honor Linda's life, Weide suggests making a donation to Best Friends Animal Sanctuary, her favorite animal shelter.


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